Apparatus for use in manufacturing condensers



Oct. 30, 1923.

W. H. PRIESS APPARATUS FOR USE IN MANUFACTURING CONDENSERS Filed April 30, 1920 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 III LHNHLPIFIIF Oct. 30, 1923.

W. H. PRIESS APPARATUS FOR USE IN MANUFACTURING CONDENSERS Filed April 30, 1920 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I I F "I .W I L. thud. llllllllllll II F Wh l l l h H lllllllllllllllll lllllllllillll Get. 30, 1923. 1,47,494

w. H. PRIESS APPARATUS FOR USE IN MANUFACTURING CONDENSERS Filed April 30 1920 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 6 gUUUUUQL/Q UUUUUUJ Patented Oct. 30, 1923..

WILLIAM H. P311538, 013 BELMONT, MASSACHUSETTSyASSIG-NOB TO WIRELESS SPE- CIALTY APPARATUS COMPANY, ,OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. 1

APPARATUS FOR USE IN MANUFACTURING CONDENSEBS.

Application filed April 30, 1920. Serial No. 377,978;

To aZZ'whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. Pnmss, a citizen of the United States, residing at Belmont, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Apparatus for Use in Manufacturing Condensers, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification,

:1) like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

An electrical condenser usually comprises alternate sheets of conducting and dielectric materials secured together by an adhesive J material having suitable characteristics for this work. The present invention is concerned with a machine for coating the condenser elements with adhesive material and it aims to devisea machine of this character which will perform this operation rapidly, which will apply a thin uniform coating to the entire surface of each element, which will handle the adhesive material neatly and economically and which will thoroughly satisfy the practical requirements of a machine of this character. The invention also is directed to the provision of efiicient means for drying the coated elements and for distributing them to the desired points. I

It is the usual practice to coat only the mica or other dielectric elements of a condenser and consequently the invention will be herein disclosed. with reference to the coating of these, particular elements, it being understood that this disclosure is made by way of illustration rather than limitation. Moreover, since a varnishof some kind is the adhesive material most commonly used in the machine coating of condenser elements, the adhesive material used will be hereinafter referred to as varnish.

The nature of the invention will be readily understood from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, and the novel features will be-particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring now to the drawings,

Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in vertical cross section, illustrating the machine constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross sectional view showing the varnish applying rolls of the machine and the parts adjacent thereto;

Fig. 3 is a. cross sectional view, similar to Fig. 2, taken at a. different point;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the varnishing machine shown. in Fig. 1 equipped with a somewhat different form of conveying apparatus for the coated elements; 7

Fig. 5 is a plan view (if certain parts of the conveying mechanism shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the mechanism shown in Fig.5; and

Fig. 7 is a cross sectional view through the varnish reservoir showing the lower adhesive applying roll in elevation.

The machine shown comprises (Fig. 3) two rolls 2 and 3, res ectively, mounted to rotate in bearings (Fig 2) at opposite ends thereof, the bearings for the roll 2 being in a block 7 supported in inclined guideways formed in bearing members 1 and 5, respectively. This bearing block at one end of the machine is shown in Fig. 2 at 7. It will also be seen from this figure that a coiled spring 8 bears against the block 7 and is backed up by an adjusting screw 9. The construction at the other side of the machine is the same as that illustrated in Fig. 2 and the effect of the springs 8 is to force the peripheral surfaces of the rolls 2' and 3 firmly but yieldingly into contact with each other. Lubricating material is supplied to the bearing surfaces by oil cups, one of which isshown at 10, Fig. 2.

The lower roll 3 (Figs. 7, 2 and 3) runs in contact with the varnish in a small reservoir or dip pan 12 supported on posts 13, that project upwardly from the bottom of an overflow tank 14. Varnish is conducted to the reservoir 12 by a tube 15 leading from a supply tank 16 mounted on the machine frame, the flow of varnish being controlled by a valve 17 (Fig. 4-). If the varnish is fed too rapidly to the pan 12 it overflows the upper edge of this pan and this overflow is caught in the reservoir l and is conducted by a pipe 18, Fig. 1, to a suitable tank 19 where it is saved. The varnish picked up on the roll 3 (Fig. 3). will be transferred to the roll 2 and will tend to the bearings where it would cause them to stick. In order to prevent the varnish from reaching the bearing surfaces, each roll 1s provided with two series of grooves 20, Fig. 7, arranged respectively at the opposite ends of the active surface of the roll; that is,-

the surface which applies varnish to the mica elements. In order for the varnish to reach the bearing surfaces of either roll it must travel along the entire surface of the series of grooves and the centrifugal action set up by the rotation of the roll tends to prevent the varnish from flowing inwardly toward the axis of the roll, which it must do in order to travel from, one groove to another. Even when the varnish works into the first or second groove it is impossible for it to travel through the entire series of grooves.

As a further means for preventing the travel of the varnish along the grooves, a series of stationary fingers or scrapers 46 and 47 (Fig. 2) may be provided to enter the grooves. These fingers are made of bronze or other suitable material and they bear against the walls of the grooves and scrape off the varnish, thus reducing very substantially the volume of varnish whic the grooves otherwise would have to handle. These fingers may or may not be employed,

, as desired.

Opposite edges of the reservoir 12 rest in the grooves at opposite ends of the active surface of the roll 3, as shown in Fig. 7, so that only the active surface of the roll dips in the varnish and the greater part of the drip from the rolls thus is caught in this reservoir. in working outwardly farther toward the bearing surfaces is cau ht in the overflow reservoir 14 and in or er to facilitate the catching of the varnish 2 upwardly inclined aprons, one of which is shown at 21, Fig. 2, are secured to the forward edge of the reservoir opposite the grooved portions of the rolls. This construction prevents the loss of any varnish that drips from the rolls. It will be seen from a comparisonof Figures 2 and 3 that the central portion of the reservoir 14 opposite the active surfaces of the rolls 2 and 3 is cut away or set back so that the micafilms shoot over the edge of the reservoir as they are ejected from between I the rolls.

The machine may conveniently be driven by an electric motor 22, Figs. 1 and 4, connected by a belt 23 with a pulley 24 secured on a shaft 25 fast on the lower roll 3. The

That, however, which succeeds" active surfaces of the rolls define or form a trough between them for the little pool of varnish brought up by roll 3 from reservoir 12, both surfaces of each sheet thus receiving a coating of varnish. Due to the fact that the rolls are forced into peripheral contact with each other by the springs 8, only a very thin coating remains on the sheet. The mica sheets usually are only about one thousandth of an inch thick so that they force the rolls apart only very slightly.

These sheets of mica when ejected from between the rolls drop on a belt 26 (Fig. 1) made of cloth or other suitable material, supported at one end on a drum 27 and at its opposite end on an idle roll or pullev 28. The drum 2? is mounted fast on a shaft 29 which is driven by a belt 30 from the shaft 25. It will be seen from an inspection of Fig. 1 that the driving ratio is such that the drum 2'. revolves only very slowly carrying the mica sheet M outwardly toward the delivery end of the conveyor where they drop off and fall into a screened hopper 31 through which a strong current of air is blown by means of a fan 32. The varnishes used in processes of this character consist essentially of gums or resinous substances dissolved in volatile'solvents, and the length and rate of travel of the conveyor 26 are made such that the greater -part of the solvent is evaporated before the mica sheets are delivered to the hopper 31. The blast of air created by the fan 32 also exerts an effective drying action on the varnish coating; that is, it acts to evaporate the solvent, with the result that when the mica sheets finally drop into the bottom of the hopper they are sufficiently dry to prevent stickin together. The location of the forward r01 2 at a higher level than the rear roll 3 is advantageous both in enabling the attendant to fed the mica sheets at a more convenient angle, and also in causing the rolls to eject these sheets in a direction which enables them to fall flat on the belt 26. I Sometimes there is a tendency for th mica films or sheets to stick to the belt and in order to ensure their removal from the belt at.the delivery end of the conveyor, a stripper rod 34, Flgs. 1, 5 and- 6, is located close to the surface of the belt where it turns around the pulley 28. Due to the curvature of the belt at this point, the forward edge of each mica film springs away from the belt when the belt tends to carry it around the pulley, and this springing aciton occurs before the film has reached the stripper 34. Consequently, the forward movement of the film after this action carries its front edge over the stripper and the continued movement of the belt enables the stripper to peel or strip the film ofi' the belt.

It will now be appreciated that the machine above described will coat the dielectric ill) Inc

elements very rapidly and that its use is economical both of labor and of adhesive material. Furthermore, the results produced by the machine are superior to hand work since a thinner and more uniform coating of varnish is applied to the surfaces of the mica sheet and consequently less trouble is experienced in the subsequent operations of drying and baking.

After the mica films have been delivered to the hopper 31 they arenext assembled with tin foil, or other conducting elements, to form a condenser stack. This operation usually is performed by hand and for certain classes of work the elements for a given condenser are counted before they are delivered to the assembler. For the purpose of effecting a further savin in labor, the conveyor 26 may be arrange to deliver the mica films to a second conveyor 36, Fi s. 4, and 6 running along the table 37 in ront of which the operatives sit who perform the assembling operation. This conveyor belt is driveriby a pulley 38 fast on a shaft 39 to which also is fixed a pulley 40 that is connected by a belt 41 to the pulley 42 of an electric motor 43. A switch 44, Fig. 6, controls the supply of current to the motor 43 and is located in a convenient position for operation by the foot of the attendant who feeds the coating machine. Normally this switch is open and consequently the belt 36 is normally stationary. With this arrangement the operator who feeds the coating (iii machine counts the films as he feeds them one at a time between the rolls. When he has fed in the number which are to be delivered to an assembler, he Stops feeding and waits until the last of these films has been delivered to the second conveyor belt 36. He then steps on the switch 44 thus starting the motor 43 and setting the distributing conveyor belt 36 into motion, and he releases the switch again in time to stop the belt when it has carriedthe supply of films just coated to any stationor operator to whom he wishes to deliver them. This assembler then removes the films from the belt placing them in a stack by themselves. As soon as the films have been delivered the machine attendant begins the feeding of another supply of mica sheets into the varnishing machine. By this arrangement a second handling of the films is avoided and time also is saved in the counting of the films since they can be counted more rapidly bythe machine attendant as he feeds them between the rolls than they can by another operative after they have been varnished. The supply of electric current to the motor 22 that drives the varnishing machine is controlled by a switch 49 located within convenient reach of the attendant, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

While I have herein shown and described the best embodiment of the invention of which I am at present aware, it'will be appreciated by those skilled in this art-that this embodiment 'may be modified in many particulars without departing from the spirit or scope of this invention.

" WVhat is claimed as new is:

1. A varnishing machine for sheets ofv mica and the like, which comprises a pair of rolls rotatable so that their upper surfaces come into peripheral contact with one an-.

other intermediate their ends and defining a varnish-containing trough; a, varnish reservoir located below the contact surface of one of the rolls and down into which suchro'l-l extends, said roll having its ends supplying liquid adhesive to said rolls, and

bearings supporting said roll-s, said rolls each having a plurality of grooves-formed therein at opposite sides of itsactive area, whereby the adhesive is prevented from working along the rolls into said bearings. 3. An. apparatus for coating condenser elements with adhesive material, comprising, in combination, a pair of rolls in pe-- ripheralcontact witheach other, bearings supporting said rolls, said rolls each having a series of grooves formed therein at opposite sides of its active area, means for supplying liquid adhesive material to said active areas, and means for catching the drip from said rolls. I I

4. An "apparatus for coating condenser elements with adhesive material, comprising, incombination, a pair of 'rolls'in peripheral contact with each other, bearings supporting said, rolls, said rolls each havng a series of grooves formed therein at opposite sides of its active area, a reservoir in which the active area of one of said rolls dips, and a tank arranged to catch the oyerfiow from said reservoir and the drip from said rolls. a

5. A varnishing machine for sheets of.

mica and the like, which comprises a pair of rolls in peripheralconta/ct with one another intermediate their ends and defining thereby a varnish-containing trough, said rolls being rotatable in" opposite directions to cause their upper surfaces to move downward into contact with one another; a varnish reservoir located below one of said rolls and down into whichsuch roll extends to collect varnish for its conveyance to the trough between the upper surfaces of the two rolls; a support in which the' ther roll is movably mounted; and spring means arranged to press said movably mounted roll into its position, of peripheral contact with the varnish-conveying roller.

6. A varnishing machine-for sheets of rotation being such as to' cause the upper surfaces of the rolls to move downward into contact; a varnish-reservoir located below one of said rolls and down into which such roll extends; a conveyor belt extending from a point remote from the rolls to a point below the line of contact between the rolls, to receive the wet varnished sheets dropping from between the rolls; and means for sep arating the coated sheets from said belt at a oint remote from the varnishing'rolls.

A varnishing machine for sheets of mice and the like, which comprises a pair of rolls and a varnish reservoir located below one of them and down into which such roll'extends; said rolls defining a varnish trough between their upper surfaces and oppositely rotatable in direction to cause varnish to be conveyed from the reservoir to the trough by the rollwhich extends down into the reservoir; one of said rolls being bodily movable away from the other .an provided with. spring means tending to force the rolls together; and a conveyor belt extending from a point remote from the rollsto a point below their line of contact, to receive the wet varnished sheets falling therefrom.

8.-A varnishing machine for sheets of vmica andthe like. which comprises a pair of rolls and a varnish reservoir located below one of them and down into which such roll extends; said rolls being oppositely rota-- table in direction to cause varnish to be con veyed from the reservoir by the roll therein to the trough formed between the up er surfaces of the two rolls; a conveyor Eelt extending from a point remote from the rolls to a oint below their line of contact; and

a stripper arranged adjacent the belt at a point remote from the varnish rolls and constructed to en age the coated sheets and peel them oi? the belt.

9. A varnishing machine for sheets of ,mica and the like. which com rises a pair faces of the two rolls; said r'oll being formed with. grooves beyond the'ends of its contact surface with theother roll, and the ends. of said reservoir extending up into 531d" grooves; and'an overflowtank located below the reservoir and below the 'rooved ends of the varnish conveying roll w ich project beyond the reserviorr 10. An apparatus for coating condenser elements with adhesive material, comprising, in combination, a pair of rolls mounted of rolls and a varnish reservoir located below i one of them and down into which such roll extends; the upper surfaces of said rolls forming a trough between them above their line of contact, and saidrolls being oppositely rotatable indirection to cause varnish to be conveyed from the reservoir to the troughby the roll in the reservoir: an overflow tank located below the reservoir and below the ends of the roller beyond .its contact surface which extend beyond the reservoir; and a conveyor belt located below the line of contact between the rolls, in posielements withadhesive material, comprising, in combination, a pair of rolls mountedin peripheral contact with each other, bear ings for said rolls, m eans for supplying ad hesive material to said rolls, peripheral grooves in said rolls between their active surfaces and their bearings, and means for removing the adhesive material from the grooves.

14. An apparatus for coating condenser elements with adhesive material, comprising, in combination, a pair of rolls mounted in peripheral contact with each other, bearings for said rolls, means for supplylng adhesive material to said rolls, peripheral grooves in said rolls between their active surfaces and their bearings, and stationary from the walls of the grooves.

15. A varnishing machine for sheets of mica and the like, which comprises a pair.

of rolls and a varnish reservoir located below one of them and down into which such'roll extends; the upper surfaces of said rolls forming a trough between them above their line of contact, and the rolls being oppositely rotatable, the roll in the reservoir being rotatable in a direction to convey varnish from the reservoir up to the upper surfaces of the two rolls and thence down into the trough between such surfaces; intermeshing gears fixed to cause the rotation of one roll to drive the other; a support in which is movably mountedthe roll to which varnish is conveyed; spring means arranged to ress the movably mounted roll into its perip eral contact with the varnisheconveying roll and to yield to sheets fed between the rolls with out unmeshin said gears.

16. A varnishing machine for sheets of mica andthe like, which comprises a pair of rolls and a varnish reservoir located below one of them and down into which such roll extends; the upper surfaces of said rolls forming a trough between them above their line of contact, and the rolls being oppositely rotatable, the roll in the reservoir being rotatable in a direction to convey varnish up to the upper surfaces of the two rolls and thence down into the trough between such surfaces; a conveyor belt located below the line of contact between the rolls and extending to'a point. remote therefrom; bearings for the ends of the rolls; the rolls being formed with grooves intermediate their contacting surfaces and their parts in said bearings; and an overflow tank located below the grooved portions of the rolls and on opposite sides of said conveyor belt. a

17. A varnishing machine for sheets of mica and the like, comprising the combination with a pair of contacting rolls between which the sheets are fed to coat them with wet varnish; of a conveyor belt extending beneath the rolls to receive the wet sheets falling therefrom and remove them from the vicinity thereof; and a stri per arranged at a point remote from the ro ls to engage thecoated sheets on the belt and remove them therefrom. I

18. A varnishing machine for sheets of mica and the like, comprising a pair of contacting rolls, the axes of which lie in a plane at an angle to the vertical and horizontal, down between which rolls the sheets can be fed to be'coated; and a conveyor belt extending to a position underneath the line of contact between the rolls to receive the wet sheets falling from beneath the rolls and remove them from the vicinity thereof.

19. A varnishing machine for sheets of mica and the like, which comprises a pair of rolls in contact with and rotatable toward. one another; a conveyor belt located below the line of contact of the rolls to receive the' sheets dropped therefrom, said blt 'extending to a distant point; and means associated with the belt to cause a sufficient curvature thereof at a point distant from the rolls to eifect a separation of the lower surfaces of the sheets from'the belt.

20. A varnishing machine for sheets of mica and the like, which comprises a pair of rolls and a varnish reservoir located below one of them and down into which such roll extends, the upper surfaces of said rolls forming a. trough between them above their line of contact, and the rolls being op sitely rotatable, the roll in the reservoir lieing rotatable in a direction to convey varnish up to the upper surfaces of the two rolls and thence down into the trough between such surfaces said'rolls being extended beyond the reservoir and such extended portions being formed with grooves bearings for the rolls beyond their grooved-portions; an overflow tank located below the extended, grooved portions of the rolls; intermeshing dgears on the rolls beyond said bearings; an springs for pressing the rolls into contact with one another and permitting yielding to the sheets fed between the rolls.

21. An improved varnishing machine for mica sheets and the like, including a pair of spring-pressed rolls defining a trough, a conveyor belt passing under said rolls to a point adjacent the end of the machine and means co-operating with said belt to remove the varnished sheets from the belt.

22. An improved varnishing machine for mica sheets and the like, comprising a varnish trough, means for feeding mica sheets downward through the bottom of said trough, an inclined conveyor belt located below said trough and extending to a point above the varnish trough, and means associated with said conveyor belt for causin .a sharp chan e in the direction of trave thereof, where y the varnished mica sheets will be snapped off the belt.

23. An improved varnishing machine for mica sheets and the like, comprising a varnish trou h, means for feeding mica sheets downwar throu h the bottom of said trough, an inclined conveyor belt located below said trough and extending to a point above the varnish trough, means associated with said conveyor belt for causing a sharp change in the direction of travel thereof, and means located adjacent said belt at the point of greatest change in the direction of travel for stri ping the varnished mica sheets from the elt. v

24. An improved varnishing machine for mica sheets and the like, comprising a varnishtrough, means for feeding mica sheets downward throu h the bottom of said trough, an incline conveyor belt located below said trough and extending-to a point above the varnish trough, means associated with said conveyor belt for causing a sharp.

change in the direction of travel thereof, and a tight wire extending transversely of the belt, and in engagement therewith at the point of greatest change in the direction of travel for positively stripping the var- 1 nished mica sheets from the belt.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

WILLIAM H. PRIESS. 

